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#11 Dayton glides past #10 Stanford in South Region semis

Last night, the 11^th seeded Dayton Flyers literally ran circles around the foul-plagued Stanford Cardinal en route to a convincing 82-72 victory at Memphis鈥檚 FedEx Forum. Dayton now advances to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1984. Jordan Sibert towered over the competition, scoring 18 points and leading a group of four players who reached double figures. But the most glaring statistic was the huge production by Dayton鈥檚 bench, which outscored Stanford鈥檚 reserves 34-2 on the night. Dayton鈥檚 coach Archie Miller skillfully distributed his 11-player roster in numerous waves that effectively wore out Stanford鈥檚 6-player rotation.

Dayton didn鈥檛 change their game plan one bit from last week鈥檚 meeting with Syracuse and when Stanford went into their own 2-3 zone, the Flyers responded by hitting 6 three-pointers in the first half. Dayton was also very effective at getting Stanford鈥檚 starters into foul trouble 鈥� the most critical being Cardinal center Stefan Nastic who, though he had 15 points for the game, fouled out with five minutes remaining. This weekend, the 鈥淐inderella鈥� Flyers meet #1 overall seed Florida with a trip to the Final Four on the line.

#2 Wisconsin dismantles #6 Baylor to gain Elite Eight in West Region

Controlling the tempo was always the key to this game; Baylor鈥檚 athleticism and speed against Wisconsin鈥檚 steady, methodical and relentless defense. Wisconsin won the battle, neutralizing Baylor鈥檚 2-2-1 鈥渂ox鈥� zone on the way to defeating the Bears, 69-52, Thursday night at Anaheim鈥檚 Honda Center. Starting guard Ben Brust scored 14 points, including 3 three-point shots and center Frank Kaminsky hit for 19 points - along with six blocked shots - to spearhead the Badgers' hard-hitting effort.

Baylor only hit 2 of 15 three-pointers, which was a big contrast from the barrage they applied to Creighton last week, while making only a total of 20 shots from the floor. On the other side, Wisconsin sank 6 shots from beyond the arc. The Badgers were also superior on the boards 鈥� grabbing 31 defensive rebounds to Baylor鈥檚 22. Additionally, Wisconsin was skillful at denying Baylor from scoring points in transition. But Wisconsin also got more out of its reserves, who outscored Baylor鈥檚, 18-7. The Badgers now meet the Arizona Wildcats.

#1 Arizona slips past #4 San Diego State to reach West Region final

Arizona was spinning its wheels for three-quarters of Thursday night鈥檚 West Region semifinal against the San Diego State Aztecs. But as is typically the case, the final result relies on what happens in the second half. The Wildcats鈥� star and Pac 12 player of the year Nick Johnson, who had been 0-10 from the floor for the game's first 30 minutes, scored 15 in the remaining time to help hold off the Aztecs, 70-64, at Anaheim鈥檚 Honda Center. Arizona is now in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2011 and will face Wisconsin this weekend.

Arizona came into the contest with the express intent of shutting down San Diego State鈥檚 offensive juggernaut, Xavier Thames, but gave up 25 points to the senior guard. In fact, Thames was largely the only offense that San Diego State had in the last five minutes as Johnson escaped his doldrums and got to work. He was joined in Arizona鈥檚 scoring attack by forward Aaron Gordon鈥檚 15 points, and guard T.J. McConnell鈥檚 11. And though the Aztecs outrebounded the Wildcats during the last five minutes of the game, San Diego State appeared fatigued with Arizona grabbing offensive rebounds seemingly at will 鈥� earning them two and sometimes three clock-resets per possession.

#1 Florida聽once again defeats #4 U.C.L.A. to gain Elite Eight

The Florida Gators continued their dominance in recent years over U.C.L.A. with an easy 79-68 victory in their South Region semifinal over the Bruins Thursday night at Memphis鈥檚 FedEx Forum. The more experienced Gators squad succeeded in neutralizing U.C.L.A.鈥檚 best player, Kyle Anderson, by getting him in early foul trouble. That鈥檚 when Florida鈥檚 tandem of outstanding guards, Scottie Wilbekin and Michael Frazier II, got to work. They scored a combined 32 points on the night, including seven 3-pointers to pace the Gators. Additionally, Florida鈥檚 reserves outpaced U.C.L.A.鈥檚 by a 23-11 scoring margin.

Against Florida鈥檚 experienced front court, U.C.L.A.鈥檚 long-range shooting was stymied 鈥� they only hit 3 of 18 shots from beyond the arc, and only 40% of their two-pointers. And the Gators鈥� Wilbekin, though he had missed 10 of his first 12 shots, managed to hit three huge ones in the waning minutes, demonstrating his ability to score in the clutch and giving the Gators a comfortable 70-63 with 35 seconds to play.

In reaching their fourth consecutive regional final, the Gators now own a gaudy 4-0 record over the Bruins in the NCAA tournament.聽